Monday, January 11, 2010

Instability

Weak, reaching spin from the PM, he's grasping. Apparently minority government itself is now a rationale for proroguing Parliament. Very telling that the Conservative spin seems to be morphing day by day, the rationale of working on the budget/economic plan is not enough:

Prime Minister Stephen Harper is offering a new wrinkle on his reasons for suspending Parliament - the government can do more important work without MPs sitting in the Commons.

In an interview with Business News Network, the prime minister flatly rejected the notion that proroguing Parliament has left the country open to criticism it is not a stable democracy.

In fact, it is Parliament in a minority situation that is perceived by markets as unstable, said Harper.

"The games begin when Parliament returns," he explained. "The government can take our time now to do the important work to prepare the economic agenda ahead.

"That said, as soon as Parliament comes back . . . the first thing that happens is a vote of confidence and there'll be votes of confidence and election speculation for every single week after that for the rest of the year. That's the kind of instability markets are actually worried about."

The irony, it's dripping. It's the PM who "games" parliamentary procedure, invoking prorogation to avoid the legal effect of a parliamentary order.

The Prime Minister should work cooperatively in the minority government situation he's in, recognizing the limit of his government's mandate. There's no need for a litany of confidence votes, just don't do it, Mr. Prime Minister.

The people's mandate, a minority government mandate, should not be a problem for a Prime Minister. It's not a source of instability or something that stands in the way of governing. More limit pushing rhetoric from the Prime Minister, it's what they do when they're feeling the heat.

Whimsically pulling the rug out from under Parliament, that's what's unstable here.